The 6th Weapon
by CloudRedXIII
Summary: Sephiroth may be long gone, but now Cloud and his friends are up against something even more deadly than they could have ever imagined. Please R&R!
1. The First Day

Nope, I don't own any rights to anything I'm writing about! 

Prologue

The meteor has hit. Many have died, and yet many still live. The time for terror seems to have passed, but something more terrible than anything yet faced is stirring, An existence unknown to all but itself has given it time to grow mentally and physically, though it has done nothing but sleep for millions of years, to be awoken only if the other five failed or were destroyed. The time has come and it will announce itself shortly.

Chapter 1

Midger is in ruins. As Cloud Strife, ex-SOLDIER, walks through the destroyed city, he looks over the broken homes and mangled streets with something resembling disgust. It has been nine days since he fought and destroyed Sephiroth, and much longer than that since he set foot in this place. He can't stop the memories from hitting him over and over, however. The day he met Aerith, stopping to buy a simple flower from her for a single gil. The reactors that he destroyed with AVALANCHE, Barret Wallace's anti-Shin-Ra faction. The toppling of the huge tower by those that he was out to destroy as merely a job, at least in the beginning. It seems so long ago, yet the memories are fresh and vivid in his mind.

At least it's over, he thinks to himself. The journey he embarked upon led to great self discovery, the loss of a woman he was beginning to love, and the eventual victory over those who he set himself against, those that set themselves against him, and himself. None of it came free though, and now that he has decided to make a home for himself here, with many of the people he came to love as family along the way, he must find a way to repair the city of Midger. Barret and Tifa Lockheart, a woman whom he has developed some sort of feeling for that he can't begin to describe, are also doing what they can. The damage Sephiroth caused is not light by any means, and the destruction is so great that it leaves every person who has come back here with a feeling of hopelessness.

As Cloud comes around to the rubble that was once the Slums, where Barret's old bar, and the headquarters for AVALANCHE, once stood he finds Barret and Tifa, just as he expected he would.

"Yo, Cloud, what the hell you been doin all day?" Barret growls.

"Just walking around thinking mostly, wondering how we're supposed to fix all of this with only the few hundred people that are still here." Cloud replies.

"Man, don't worry bout that shit, we did what needed to be done, and we're still alive. I've still got Marlene, and that's all I give a damn about. We're gonna get this place back to normal, or better, I hope.

"Cloud, everything is going to be ok. It's over, and we have each other." Tifa says and immediately blushes and stares with great intent and her feet.

"Yeah, well, I don't know if everything is ok, but maybe it will be." Cloud replies while staring from Tifa to Barret and back again.

Things have never really been easy, and Coud doesn't expect the simple life to start now. He has the people he's close to, (or most of them anyway, he thinks when a vision of Aerith pops into his head showing him all her beauty and the kindness of her soul) and he has at least a little hope for some form of a normal life coming to him, if not soon then eventually. He can't help but feel like something isn't quite right, however, and the strange way the Planet seems to shift from time to time. He tries to explain it away as simply rumblings of pain from the meteor strike, but something tells him he's in for quite an experience, or at least some strange occurrences over the next few weeks. That's ok though, he knows that whatever comes his way, he'll be able to handle it. He took care of Sephiroth right? What could be more terrible, stronger, or more of a threat to him, and everyone else for that matter, than Sephiroth?

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This is just kind of a short first chapter I'm throwing on here to see if anyone will actually be interested! Any comments, suggestions, or critisism should be kept the hell to yourselves! Lol I'm just kidding! I'll appreciate any feedback I can get, and will listen to most if not all suggestions you have to offer! Thanks for reading. 


	2. Cloud gets some news

Unfortunately, I still own exactly 0 rights to anything in FF7...one day...lol

Cloud, one moment sleeping peacefully in the tent that he has put up with the group of others, is woken up in the next by yells to "Wake the F@* up" from Barret. He grabs his Buster Sword, which he has kept by his side despite having acquired the Ultima weapon, and leaps from his tent. Barret is standing atop a pile of broken boards and scraps from the buildings that once stood in the Slums. His hand is raised to his face as he squints into the distance at some type of group moving slowly towards the tents. Tifa is also climbing out of her tent, although much more slowly and with much less intent than Cloud.

"Man, what the hell are you waking us up for, Barret, the sun's just barely starting to come out." Cloud mumbles as he wipes the sleep from his eyes.

"Just shut the hell up and look, will ya? Somethin's comin this way, but it ain't movin right. Take a look for yourself." Barret whispers harshly.

Cloud sighs and shields his eyes from the weak rays of light the sun is already throwing at them. It's hard to tell, since this group is still some distance away, but Barret is right. They don't seem to be walking towards them, so much as gliding. It's impossible to count the number at this distance, but it's no small group. As Tifa stumbles up to the two self-proclaimed guardians of these ruins, she immediately feels their tension and straitens up to try to get a look at what's got them so worked up.

"W-what is that, or are those, or whatever?" she stammers.

"I dunno, but somethin's just not right about em. I have a feeling that all the monsters haven't disappeared like we thought though." Barret returns.

On the return trip from the Crater, no one spotted a single monster moving about the plains, which seemed odd to the party at the time, but was never given much thought. Everyone just assumed most had disappeared with the execution of Sephiroth, or that their numbers had been greatly reduced by the Planet by some means none of them could see. Now that feeling seemed to have been proven wrong, because these were not humans moving towards them, that much was sure. The three, now deeply enthralled, watchers waited as the group moved closer and closer to them.

"Man, this shit's just too much. We got enough problems on our hands without dealin with whatever the hell they are." Barret said as he scowled into the distance.

"Aww, come on Barret," Cloud said with a smile, "You know you could use a little action. All we've done for ten days now is try to rebuild this place, eat, and sleep." Cloud said while running his hand up and down the blade of his sword.

"Well, I just hope nothing too bad happens. I'm kind of happy not fighting. I just want Midger back, and to have a home to sleep in again." Tifa fretted as she slipped on her fighting gloves, just as the group began to get close enough to see.

"Aww hell," Barret growled in his usual way, " we got a F@*!% bunch of pissed off snakes on our hands."

*****

Cloud could see them now, and Barret was definately right. Their numbers still were hard to guess, but he put them somewhere a little over one hundred. They were all somewhere between eight and ten feet long, and slithered with three to five feet of their bodies swaying back and forth above the ground. They had an odd Purplish tint, with tiny gold flecks about their scales. Some were hooded, and some weren't, but for some reason Cloud had the impression that all were of the same type. It might have been the unity they displayed, or the color, or any other number of reasons, but he was nearly sure. The same type or not, they were in for a nasty surprise.

"You two ready?" Cloud asked as he prepared to charge their visitors.

"Hell yeah I'm ready." Barret replied as he ran his left hand over his gun-arm.

"Umm...yeah, I guess. Wait. Yeah. I'm ready. I think." Tifa replied with a look of worry in her eyes.

Barret opened fire when the group of snakes was about twenty yards away, taking down rows of them before the actual fight had to begin. As soon as he had to stop and reload, Cloud and Tifa sprang forward, closing the distance in seconds, and Clouds buster sword gleamed in the more prominent rays of light from the now slightly higher sun as it came up and down on the reptilian visitors. Tifa let grunts and whooshes of breath as she pounded snake after slithering snake to death. 

Barret ran to their aid, letting out bursts of fire from his gun-arm. They seemed unstoppable, and the art of battle came back to them quickly. Snakes would slither up to any of the three, and would be cut down by Cloud's blade, pounded into submission by Tifa's raging fists, or cut in half by a quick, neat burst of fire from Barret. Already only thirty or so remained, and to all the people awakend by the clatter these three amazing guardians of so little, even Tifa, seemed to be having the times of the lives! 

After making quick work of twenty-five of the remaining thirty, Cloud was bringing his stained sword down on another helpless victim when Tifa cried out. "Cloud! Move, you've got two at your back!" He reacted only a fraction too slowly, however, and felt the sweeping tail of one, as the other sank Sharp fangs into his shoulder. Tifa and Barret ran over, making quick work of these two would be assassins, but not soon enough. Cloud fell over, hearing rather than seeing the dispatch of the last two snakes as he slipped off into unconsciousness.

*****

Cloud found himself in a black void, much like that place he found himself in after slipping into the Lifestream in Mideel. He forced both hands to the sides of his head and pressed with all his strength to force out the pain and ringing in his ears. Slowly, but surely, it subsided. He stood up, and found himself face to face with Aerith. Able to think of nothing to say, and utterly shocked by her appearance, he passed out.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed, and with the aching headache having returned, he found himself in her arms. Well, more accurately, in her lap. She was sitting with her legs stretched in front of her, and held the upper portion of his body against her. He looked into her beautiful eyes, and felt only happiness at seeing her. The pain in his head, the disorienting feel of being back in this void, the curiosity, or even bafflement, he should have felt about the whole situation, none of it touched him. He fought the pain in his body (I got bitten by a snake, he thought briefly) and stretched his arms out to her. 

With a smile, Aerith brought him up a little higher and held him in her arms while he weakly tried to do the same. Handing him a small vial filled with glowing blue liquid, she told him to drink it all, which he did with a little effort, the she began to speak:

"Hi Cloud, you don't know how great it is to see you."

"Oh, I know. Believe me, I know. God, I've missed you so much."

"Me too. I'm sad to say I'm glad that you were bitten, for many reasons."

"I can barely remember anything. Where are we? How did I get here?"

"Well, you're not exactly in the Lifestream this time, but you're not exactly on the Planet either. Oh, sure, you're body is there, and the Planet tells me that Barrette and Tifa are worrying themselves sick over you. As for how you got here...well, you didn't die, but you've as far from consciousness as you can be without it happening. Does that help?"

"Actually, no. But I just can't find it in me to question it too much. I've missed you so much. It's so hard without you. I keep thinking back over our little 'date' at the Golden Saucer, all the times we spent talking aboard the airship, and especially watching you die. You have no idea what that did to me. I got him though Aerith, I punished him for all that he took from you, and from me, and from the Planet. 

"I know, sweetie. I know. But that's not the problem anymore. Things aren't what they seem. You have no idea what you're about to be up against, what the entire Planet is about to be up against. 

"What? What are you talking about? I can't stay here? I can't stay with you? What is the purpose then, why am I here?

"Because the Planet found the opportunity to bring you here, because even though you destroyed what it created so long ago to defend itself, you are now needed to save it from one of it's own creations. The Planet made something, before it even constructed the five Weapons in it's own defense. The monstrosity it created was too powerful though. It began to destroy every living thing, with the motive of taking out anything that used even minor amounts of the Planets energy. Trees, creatures, everything. So the Planet had to focus all of it's strength on putting this beastly creation to sleep. More than to sleep. It drained all but the barest amounts of energy from it, and sent it to the very center of itself. Five other Weapons were created, with only one-fourth of the total power of the original divided between them. 

"Hold on. What are you talking about? There was never mention of a sixth Weapon."

"That's because no one knew. No one. The Planet concealed it's creation, hid it from all living things. It only kept it alive in case the five Weapons were destroyed, or were not powerful enough for it's defense. You know that the other five have been destroyed, because you did the work yourself. Now the sixth is making it's way to the surface, intent on 'saving' the Planet. It doesn't understand what it's actions will bring though. After Meteor struck, the Planet had to begin draining itself of it's power to stay alive. It can't fight off this new weapon, can't create other beings to fight it, and can't even diminish significant amounts of it's power. If it isn't stopped, it will unwillingly destroy that which created it, along with everything else. The Planet has asked me to convince you to fight it, to stop it from its own misguided deeds"

"How am I supposed to do that though? If you had any way of watching, you know how difficult is was to defeat the others, and if what you say is true, they were nothing compared to this new threat. How do I stop it?"

The Planet doesn't know yet. It just had to worn you that it needed your help, and that you were in danger no matter what. It thinks you have six more days before it is on the surface and will begin it's destruction. Prepare as well as you can."

"How? How the hell do you prepare for that? Tell me Aerith!"

"I'm sorry Cloud. You have to go back. If it can the planet will bring you hear again, maybe with a way to combat this threat. It's time for you too leave though. If you stay longer, you won't have enough life flowing through the shell of your body to maintain you. I love you, Cloud. I've loved you since you showed up, with quite and entrance I remember, at the church. I'll be watching. 

"No! I can't go back. I can't Aeirth! I love you too, and I need to stay with you!"

He was already fading back into his world, though, and nothing could keep him there. He opened his eyes to the worried looks of Tifa and Barret, and felt a tear drip down his face.

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Alright, I did my best to get a nice long chapter on here, because time is always so short for me. Between daily life, and the editing I do for a very good writer, LegendDragon (Check out her work, you won't be disappointed) I just don't ever have much time to write like I want to. I hope everyone is enjoying the story though, and please review. I'm always looking for good criticism, because without it, I'll never improve! Thanks again for reading.


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